1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is an accessory for use by individuals who must rely on oxygen therapy to provide them with a greater degree of mobility, safety and comfort. The device is a portable and inexpensive, automatically retractable gas tubing feed spool. It provides a means of automatically dispensing air tubing, on demand of the user, then retracting it, upon signal by the user.
Many persons rely on oxygen for medical treatment. Ambulatory persons who are not confined to bed most often find it difficult to contend with 25 to 50 feet of air tubing as they move about. Air supplies are contained within heavy tanks, which cannot be as mobile as the user. By providing a convenient means of controlling the dispensation of the tubing, an improvement in medical treatment can be realized.
The instant invention may be fastened to a wheelchair, attached to a walker or may be carried by the user to facilitate its employment. It acts as an intermediary between the mobile user and the immobile air supply. As the mover translates, the air tubing length between the user is increased. As the user moves toward the air supply, the tubing can be retracted.
The instant invention may be fastened to a wheelchair or may be carried on the person of the user to facilitate its employment.
2. Description of the Related Art
The Prior Art encompasses a variety of reel type devices for wire, cable and other cord-type products. Also included are reels for intravenous feeding apparatus for use with tubing, including reels for spool and retraction mechanisms. Hospitalization for some patients sometimes requires that the patient receive oxygen therapy for conditions which result from oxygen deficiency. There exist retractable tubing reels employed in conjunction with an oxygen supply tank and nasal oxygen catheter for use in hospitals. Those devices facilitate the conveyance of the oxygen through tubing apparatus that allows for retraction of the tubing. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,392,808 (Pierce).
The Prior Art does not include devices, which provide for portability and cleanliness outside the hospital environment. Specifically, the devices, and reasonable combinations thereof, show the art restricted to heavy and fixed devices, which do not serve the ambulatory patient in the setting of the home, office or public facilities. This is particularly relevant in the times of expanding home health care where hospitalization is being minimized. It is also particularly relevant in these times of the expanding numbers of elderly, those most often susceptible to respiratory ailments. There exists, then, the need for such a device that is encompassed in the present invention, and not in the Prior Art or the reasonable extensions thereof